Dispensing carton



' Feb. 28, 1956 o, v s 2,736,484

DISPENSING CARTON Filed April 20, 1953 INVENTOR 05CAR L, V/NES ATTOR United States Patent DISPENSINGGARTDN Oscar L. Vines, New York, N. Y,, assignor to Alford Cartons, Ridgefield Park, N.FJ., a corporation of New Jersey Application April 20,1953, Serial No.349,5.8 3

1 Claim. (Cl. 229- 17) This invention pertains .to .cartons, .and is concerned more particularlywith anovel carton having a collapsible dispensing spout, the carton-andspout 1 being formed from a single .blank.

In the packaging'of granular materials, such as sugar and the like, there-is aneed-for -a carton whichembodies a spout for use in pouring limited quantities of the mi;- terialfrom the carton. Furthermore, vthe spout should be closable when not in use, to protect any remaining contents of the carton against exposure, contamination, and accidental spilling. The carton of the present invention has these desirable attributes, and, in addition, is relatively simple to manufacture and assemble, and is of low cost.

Essentially, the carton of my invention comprises front and rear wall panels, two side wall panels, and bottom closure flaps, the panels also being provided with novel cover flaps which cooperate to form a movable wedge shaped spout as well as to form a top closure wall for the carton. The cover flaps on the front and rear panels include gusset panels, which form accordion-like sides for the spout, and cover panels which, when folded across each other outside the gusset panels, cooperate with a cover flap carried by a side wall panel to provide the top wall of the carton. The spout is permanently anchored at one end to a side panel by the cover flap carried by that panel, and a glue flap is provided on the opposite edge of the outer cover panel, and is adapted to serve as a tuck fiap after the carton has been initially opened. Thus, a wedge-shaped spout is formed having accordion-folded side portions which may be extended when it is desired to use the spout and which may be collapsed during periods of non-use.

These and other novel features of the .carton of my invention will be more fully understood by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of a blank from which my novel carton may be formed;

Fig. 2 is a perspective partial view of the top portion of the carton at one stage in its assembly from the blank of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the top portion of my carton in the sealed condition;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the top portion of the carton with the spout opened for pouring; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the top portion of the carton after the spout has been closed for storage.

The carton blank shown in Fig. 1 is provided with longitudinal fold lines 10, 11, 12 and 13 which divide the blank into alternately disposed main wall and side wall panels and an end glue flap. In the arrangement shown in Fig. 1 these panels comprise sucessively a side wall panel 14, a front wall panel 15, a side wall panel 16, a rear wall panel 17, and a glue flap 18. The lower ends of the panels 14, 15, 16 and 17 are provided with conventional bottom closure flaps 19, 20, 21 and 22, respec- "ice and 32, respectively. The cover flap 28 is provided with two transverse score lines 33 and 34 parallel to the score line 31 and so spaced as to definegusset panels 35 and 36 of identical size. That portion of .the cover flap 28 not used in forming these gusset panels comprises a cover panel 37. The panel 37 is provided along its edge remote from the cover flap --27 with a glue flap 38 having alifting tab 40, the glue flap being defined by a score line 41. The cover flap 29 carried by the rear wall panel 17 is alsoprovided with score lines 42and 43 parallel to 'score line 32 and defining gusset panels 44 and 45 and a cover panel 46. Thus, the cover 'flaps 28 and 29 are identical except that the .cover :flap 129 is not provided with a glue flap.

To assemblerthe carton, '.the -'blank is folded along the longitudinal fold lines 10 and 12 with the glue flap 18 adhesively secured to the inner surface of the side wall panel 14, the adhesive being applied to the underside of flap 18 in Fig. l as indicated by the dotted cross lines. After the assembled carton is erected to its rectangular form, the bottom closure flaps are folded inwardly on the transverse fold lines 23, 24, 25 and 26, and are glued together in the customary manner to provide the bottom of the carton.

Assembly of the top closure portion of the carton of my invention after it has been filled is shown in Fig. 2. It can be seen from this figure that the cover flaps 28 and 29 are folded inwardly on the score lines 31 and 32, respectively, and then outwardly on the score lines 34 and 43 respectively, to form inwardly folded gussets composed of the panels 35, 36, 44 and 45. The cover flap 27 carried by the side wall 14 is then folded inwardly across gusset panels 35 and 44. Thereafter, the cover panel 46 is folded inwardly and is adhesively secured to the upper surface of the cover flap 27 and the cover panel 37 is folded inwardly and adhesively secured to the cover panel 46. The glue flap 38 is then folded downwardly and adhesively secured to the upper end of the side wall panel 16.

It will be seen that in the erected carton the gusset panels 35, 36, 44 and 45 and the cover panels 37 and 46 cooperate to form a wedge-shaped spout which, in its collapsed form, is securely anchored at both ends to the proximate side walls by the cover flap 27 and the glue flap 38. Thus, the carton is completely closed and sealed, and may be shipped without fear of exposing the contents or accidentally spilling the contents from the spout. When it is desired to open the carton, the adhesive which secures the glue flap 38 to the side wall panel 16, may be broken by pulling outwardly and upwardly on the lifting tab 40, after which the top closure may be lifted at its free end, thus partially unfolding the gusset panels and forming the spout. After the desired quantity of material has been poured from the carton, it may be quickly and conveniently closed and the remaining contents protected, by collapsing the partly unfolded sides of the spout and tucking the glue flap 38 and the lifting tab 40 inside the side wall panel 16.

The cover flap 27 may be carried by either the side wall panel 14 (as shown), or by the other side wall panel 16. However, the glue flap 38 must be provided on the edge of the cover flap 37 remote from the cover flap 27, so

that when the carton is assembled the spout may be secured at both ends to the proximate side walls. If desired, another glue flap may be provided on the edge of the cover panel 37 opposite the glue flap 33, the additional glue flap cooperating with the cover fiap 27 to permanently anchor the end of the spout to the side wall panel 14. Also, when glue flaps are provided on both edges of the cover panel 37, the cover flap 27 may be omitted, in

which event the glue flaps alone will secure the ends of the spout to the side wall panels, one such connection being permanent and the other being removable. it will be apparent that, in any case, only one of the side wall panels should be provided with a cover flap 27, in order to provide a dispensing opening between one end of the top closure and the adjacent side wall panel when the sides of the spout are extended.

It will be appreciated, accordingly, that the carton and carton blank of my invention are characterized by a dcgree of simplicity not characteristic of prior cartons having pouring facilities. For example, my novel carton is formed from a one-piece blank and does not require any extraneous components for provision of the pouring structure. Moreover, the assembled and erected carton may be filled by conventional handling equipment and the novel top closure structure of my invention may be sealed without radical alteration of existing equipment.

I claim:

A dispensing carton which comprises a front wall, a

rear wall, two side walls, the top edges of said walls lying in the same plane, a bottom closure structure, and a top closure structure, the top closure structure being composed essentially of three substantially coextensive flaps adhesively secured to one another in superimposed position to form a top cover panel comprising, first and second cover flaps integrally connected along one edge thereof to like inwardly folded gussets which are integrally connected to the top edge of the front and rear Walls respectively, said inwardly folded gussets defined by substantially parallel fold lines, a third cover panel flap being integrally connected directly to the top edge of one of the side walls so that the cover panel is permanently and hingedly joined to said side wall, the top cover panel being provided adjacent the opposite end thereof with a glue flap adapted to engage the other side wall.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,293,060 Hothersall Aug. 18, 1942 2,377,471 Williamson June 5, 1945 2,387,640 Bouchelle Oct. 23, 1945 2,596,225 Eaton May 13, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 94,989 Sweden Dec. 29, 1938 

